Following the upward trajectory of 2024, demand for LNG-fuelled vessels has continued this year.
In the first six months of 2025, 87 new LNG dual-fuel vessels were ordered, up from 53 in the corresponding period in 2024. There are now 1,369 LNG dual-fuel vessels in operation and on order, according to data from industry coalition SEA-LNG member DNV.
This is revealed in a new report entitled ‘The LNG Pathway: Mid-Year Market Review’ – which evaluates the state of play for LNG, liquefied biomethane (LBM), and e-methane – as well as presenting initial analysis of why LNG dual-fuel engines offer the best returns under the IMO Net-Zero Framework.
Most of the 2025 orders have been for large containerships.
LNG bunkering volumes also continued to grow. In 1Q25, volumes in Rotterdam increased by 7%, compared with the same period in 2024, and Singapore reported 18% growth over the first five months of 2025 versus 2024.LNG
LNG bunkering is developing rapidly in the Western Mediterranean and China, with volumes increasing by over 60% in Shanghai in the first five months of 2025 versus the same period in 2024.
The review also included SEA-LNG’s initial analysis of the commercial implications of the IMO Net-Zero Framework using Z-Joule’s POOL.FM evaluation model.
This analysis showed that both high-pressure and low-pressure LNG dual-fuel engines offer a relative payback period of about 4.5 to 5 years, compared with VLSFO for a 14,000 TEU container vessel operating a trans-Pacific route, from Japan to the US West Coast.
However, ammonia- and methanol-fuelled vessels do not payback over the 15-year investment horizon.
